


Shade

by QuiteMagicalBane



Category: The Dark Artifices Series - Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Angst, BUT ALSO HAPPY, Friendship, Ragnor is Shade, Reuniting, Sorta?? idk, You can't change my mind
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-15
Updated: 2018-04-15
Packaged: 2019-04-23 01:08:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14321217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuiteMagicalBane/pseuds/QuiteMagicalBane
Summary: Magnus goes to the Shadow Market to find out more about the suspicious warlock illness going around and finds his old, "dead" friend.





	Shade

Magnus strode into the Shadow Market, taking in everything around him. Somehow the Shadow Market had always seemed to give Magnus an equally good and bad feeling, like everyone there belonged and felt comfortable with each other, no glamours or spells needed, but there was a tension whenever he was there as well. Perhaps that could just be him though, a lot of the other downworlders--Fairies especially--in the Shadow Market are not a fan of the Nephilim or anyone closely associated with them. And him dating a Nephilim, a Lightwood at that, didn't sit well with the others, like everything they did near him would be reported to the Clave.

Magnus noted the sideways glances and whispering as he pasted some of the booths but didn't let it bother him. He didn't come here to deal with gossip and judgment. He had work to do.

He goes up to a booth that doesn't seem extremely out of the ordinary. No cages, no whispering, check and check. The girl standing behind the booth is short, has long green hair in small braids, and has blue skin. Not like his friend Catarina's skin, which is much more visibly blue, more like a blue tint to her skin. 

"What do you need, Magnus?" The blue skinned girl asked, she had a slight accent that he couldn’t place and her teeth were a little sharp.

"Do we know each other?" Magnus Inquired, raising his eyebrow.

"No, but everyone knows you here," She said.

"Well, I suppose I am a fabulous conversation starter," Magnus amended with a slight smirk. Even though he knew that is not what she had meant. The girl, probably a Nixie, gave a smile though, so Magnus figured he had won her over. 

"So, are you just here to start conversations or did you want something?" She asked, less edge to her voice this time. 

"Ah, yes. Are there any warlocks around here..." Magnus started. "Who have been experiencing," He paused and thought through his words carefully. If this wasn't a problem known to much of the the warlock community already he did not want to start some sort of panic. Or let everyone in the Market know that he was significantly weaker than usual. "Complications with their magic." He decided was safe to say. 

The girl looked at him skeptically but after a moment gave a nod and pointed to a tent in the corner. "He's been complaining about his magic not lasting long and asking around about potions or information," she explained. 

Magnus gave a nod, sounds about right. "And who is he?" 

The girl shrugged, "No one really knows. He's secretive and covers his face and whole body. All we have is a name. Shade." 

Magnus' eyebrows pinched together, It had been a long while since he had heard of a Warlock who went by the name Shade. As far as he was aware all the Shades were long dead, it had even caused a war. "Shade? You're sure?" 

She nodded gave another shrug, "at least that's the name he gave us. Who knows if it's real."

Magnus felt a pit in his stomach, "I suppose I should go find out," 

Even though he hadn't bought anything he handed the girl money from his pocket, she had given him good information without him needing to force it out of her and he felt she deserved the tip. He strode over quickly to the tent on the other side of the room with a bit of eagerness. Surely Shade, with a name like that, must be connected to this somehow. 

Magnus sighed before slowly and quietly opening the curtain separating the tent from the rest of the Market. Sitting in the middle of the room was a man sitting, dressed in all black with his hood up and even had gloves on.

"Read the sign," said a strangely familiar agitated voice. "I'm not taking clients." The voice was definitely familiar and reminded Magnus distinctly of his long dead friend, but of course it could not be him, he had been killed years ago. I must be his imagination, Magnus told himself.

"Shade?" Magnus said, "Or at least that's what people say you're called." Magnus noticed Shade stiffen up at this, sitting with his back straighter and raised his eyebrow at this even though there was no one to see it considering Shade was turned away from him. 

"Bane?" Shade asked, his voice notably, and probably falsely deeper than before. It was too familiar. Magnus squinted his eyes. 

"That's the name," Magnus said, throwing some extra confidence and flamboyance to his voice to test the waters. "I hear it's used an awful lot around here. Understandable considering how magnificent I am." He said, if he was right about who that voice belonged to, which he was nearly certain he was, there's no chance he would not make a snide retort back. 

"Arrogant as your said to be, I see," 'Shade' said. Magnus could hear the eye roll from across the room. 

"So, Shade, It's rude to not look at someone when their talking," Magnus said, accentuating the name. "I prefer talking to people face to face." He could see Shade tighten his gloved fist. He stood to his feet, he was tall, but not as tall as Magnus. Magnus felt a muscle in his cheek twitch a little. 

Shade turned to him, his hood was pulled down low, blocking Magnus from being able to see his face. Magnus was tempted to taunt him a little more and get him to pull down the hood himself but decided he had taunted enough and took the easy way. Magnus snapped his fingers, a little blue smoke coming out from them, and the hood dropped from the warlocks head.

In front of Magnus stood none other than his lifetime friend, Ragnor Fell. Magnus had had his suspicions but his mouth still dropped and he gaped at his friend standing in front of him. Even being as sure as he was there had still been a part of him telling him that this was the illness getting worse, to the point of delirium. But now, with Ragnor standing in front of him, there was no denying it. 

"Aren't you supposed to be, oh, I don't know," Magnus said. "Dead?" 

"Yeah, well aren’t you supposed to be this 'Magnificent warlock?'" Ragnor asked. "Sometimes we aren't what we're supposed to be"

Magnus was only a little offended, too happy to actually be arguing with Ragnor again to be mad. "I thought you were dead for five years," Magnus said. "I just found out that you're alive not even two minutes ago, and you're already insulting me?"  
Ragnor smirked, that smirk that Magnus had missed, though if anyone asked, especially now, he would deny it. "Old habits die hard" Ragnor smiled a little more, "unlike me."

Magnus rolled his eyes hard enough that Alexander would be proud of it. "Okay, enough jokes" Magnus said, it was a sentence Magnus had hardly ever said in his very long life. "Why didn't you let me know you were alive for for FIVE years?"   
"It never came up," Ragnor said with a shrug.

"How didn't it 'COME UP'?" Magnus said with indignation. "You couldn't snap up a fire message or send a text? To me, Cat, or Raphael?" Magnus felt a little ache in his chest when he said Raphael's name. He hardly allowed himself to think of him now unless Lily was around. He wondered if Ragnor had gotten the news.

"I was busy! And it was easier if no one knew I was still around," He explained. "No one was suspicious." 

Magnus looked and down Ragnors body. "Oh yeah, because covering every inch of your skin and and wearing a cloak isn't suspicious." 

"It raises much less suspicion and confusion than bright green skin would" Ragnor reasoned, and Magnus had to admit he had a point. 

"Fine," Magnus said. "Then what was so important that you had to play dead for five years?" Magnus asked, reasonably he knew he shouldn't tempt fate. He already had enough going on in his life, what with his and Alec’s two children, some weird warlock illness, and all that the Blackthorns have gotten themselves involved in. And the last thing he needed right now was more problems but he was curious, and perhaps it was even connected to one of the problems he was facing now. 

"I assume by now you've been feeling ill?" Ragnor inquired. "Going unconscious after using your magic? Magic depleting much quicker than usual?" 

Magnus nodded his head to the side a little which was all the confirmation he gave. 

"Well, I've been trying to find out what is causing it," Ragnor explained. Magnus' eyebrows pinched together in confusion.

"Years before it even began?" He asked. There was a slight accusatory note to his voice.

"I had been tipped off that something was going to happen," Ragnor said. "Someone from Idris--Or that's what I assume-- left a note, and I had had recurring dreams that note had somehow known about" He said, Magnus nodded along. "So I faked my death and left you that note so I could remedy it." He said, He actually looked a little guilty which shocked Magnus. Who knew Ragnor Fell was capable of feeling anything but annoyed? 

 

Magnus' head hurt from this evening thus far. there was too much information, and still much missing, his friend was apparently alive, and he had expected it to be a quick in and out at the Shadow Market. "Do you think," Magnus began. "That perhaps we should move this somewhere else? somewhere with less prying ears and more alcohol?" Magnus suggested. 

 

Ragnor nodded, "Yes, maybe that's a good idea. And we should probably fill Catarina and Tessa in on all this before we get more into it," He said.

 

"Then we will definitely need that alcohol," Magnus said with a chuckle. "You are going to get an ear full from Catarina tonight." He said with a smile forming on his lips.

Ragnor hummed. "Finally I'll know what it's like to be reprimanded by her. Something you're very used to, of course." 

"Of course," Magnus mocked. "Because I lead a fun, adventure filled life. And you both know nothing of fun."


End file.
